Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1887-07-23

Amusement of Children Is Fashioned
from T~in-Popularity of "~JingIe."
Old Nuremberg, Germany. can no
longer be called ''the toy house of the
world" There are some six or seven
manufactures Of tin toys in the United
States ut the present time, and of these
Is the toy shop of Mr.. Thomass in Scher-
merhorn street, where every conceivable
shaped invention for the amusement of
children is fashioned from tin. A circus
Is hardly more attractive than the show
III the salcsrooms Of the mandatory,
where elephants II horses, camels and
sheep, gymnasts, etc, are in close con
tiguity with velocipedes, walking dolls,
merry go rounds, menagerie wagons, etc. /;
In short, hundreds of curiou tin toys I'm
endless variety. Mr.. Thonass learned his
trade In Germany, and, Us u necessary part
OF IT, ne is an artist.
"Of course, " said he, in showing q port
folio of very clever drawings, 1.-THE first
thing in my business Is to make the design
OF the toy to be manufactured. Here, for
instal2e, is the drawing Of n horse; the
outlines are cut in card board, and from
t.,is the stencil is made in metal which is
laid On the tin, and by one slip Of a press
Is cut into shape"
On the second floor the workmen were
busy cutting the material into shape with
machines that looked almost human.
Here WAS n squaring machine, here a
cutting machine, here one for rounding
the tin, another for bullying it, and so on,
with Il dozen or more facilities and meth
obs for such processes.
'Do you make tin swords? ] saw them
M ny,,fnoy,ra l., N,n,loSv lo.t ,-,on
and the manipulation OF tin in this direc-
ton was most curious and interesting
mo, we do not make the swords or the
musical tops. The dealers and manufac-
turers over there make enough to supply
the worlds demand. We cannot compete
with them in certain styles of toys, but
we export others in large quantities, and
the demand is growing. Each toy you
see here must pass through many hands
before it is perfected. You saw the draw
INK of the horse. Well two shapes must
be cut from the metal. Then the contours
must be rounded out by another work
man, and the Two parts are soldered to-
gether exactly. A platform with little
wheels must be made to place the horse
on, but first the horse must be painted.
Several large watts OF different colored
paints are ready to dip the toys in when
necessary. 1t takes out a moment for the
workman to immerse the horse in the
liquid, when, with many other toys in the
same degree of finish, it is carried to n
drying room on q crate and placed III "a
shelf TO dry. Later il is given to a facial
artist for the coloring OF the eyes, nostrils,
name n tail; still another workman
fasteEs the horse 70 the platform and bell
on its back, or ~perchance a jockey. Inc
toy is now complete and ready for pack
iag. A pretty toy Is the boy and butter.
fly with chime Of bells. The boy stands
on q platform with a stick in his hands.
Before him is a butterfly poised over q
bell. The toy is wound up and runs about
the floor as the boy touches the butterfly
with his stick, when the chimes ring mer-
rily."
(Which toys are most in demands"
"Oh, the bell toys; anything that will
make ~ noise. We have patent dogs that
ring bells, sail boats with n sailor and
chime Of bells, a picnic party on q plat
form ringing chime bells, galioping ele-
plant with chime bells, goats, camels,
and, most comical of all, Mary and her
little lamb with chime bells
A live boys heart would bc delighted
with the wonderful mechanical toyS-thc
tweuty-one inch steamboat that moved rs
though propelled by steam, and the loco
motives and buggies, the steam fire en-
gincs with the horses and firemen COM
pletc, the railroad trains, the city street
cars, elevated railways with cars and en-
CINE that move on them, the ~carrousel
with horses and riders, footncn and
cllariots, all rushing at the greatest speed
in q ring or circle, where flags are lying.
The merry 60 around has a central figure
which turns a crank that moves the horses
and other figures in the circle. One Of the
most attractive toys is Santa Claus, with
an evergreen bush in his hands, sitting in
q sleigh drawn by two goats. All these
toys have n clock movement. The exact
ness and perfection Of the toys in repre-
senting animals, human beings and
methods OF living and amusement are
wonderful.
Most of the employees are men, but
there are several women for the finer fin
fishing of the toys. The three stories OF
the factory have each its division OF labor,
with the drying room IA large, dark cham
Der heated by stoves at one side OF the
third floor. Every detail of the business is
in the most perfect order. There are boxes
and barrels OF the half completed toys
ready Tor u2cOratlOn enu Tue shipping uIu
clipping of tin, etc, all in routine and u
kind of harmony in the whole movement.
Returning to the office, Mr.. Thomass
suddenly wound up a walking doll and
set it on the floor. Together with a dozen
youngsters who were present, | saw this
chubby doll walk very rapidly across the
room pushing a miniature wagon. Then
he opened n large square paper box and
revealed some charming toys already
packed for expectation, but kindly taking
them ont there was first a locomotive,
named Hercules, with a tender; two rail
way passenger cars, with a baggage car
on, having ~. s. Mail Route painted
on the outside. A fire engine was on the
table, with hose attached, which throws a
stream of water across the street. And
there was a milk wagon, with four per-
feet little milk cans so fashioned that 1T is
almost impossible to destroy them, each
holding as much as a small wine glass;
Brooklyn Eagle.
A Colored Invention.
Taliaferro county again takes the cake.